


Sincerely, Fuck You

by hoard_of_stars



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: I Can't Believe I Wrote This, Minor Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson, Original Character(s), anyways enjoy, author cannot tag, avenging zoe nightshade, badass child of percabeth, i found it in my drafts and decided fuck it, she hates hercules tbh, what did u expect annabeth is her mom, when you cant tag to save your life, yeah percy said not to do dumb shit but she doesnt care anymore, yeah she fucks up hercules bad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-02
Updated: 2019-03-02
Packaged: 2019-11-08 03:54:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17973977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hoard_of_stars/pseuds/hoard_of_stars
Summary: When Zoe Jackson went on her first quest, she was not prepared to come face to face with Hercules.She promised her dad she wouldn't do anything dumb, but if he wanted a guarantee he should have made her swear on the River Styx. Besides, some promises are made to be broken.





	Sincerely, Fuck You

Zoë Jackson was seventeen when she went on her first quest. It was a difficult quest, and her father almost cried when it was prophesied to her. Her mother started yelling to Chiron about how she wasn't letting her daughter go through the same thing that they did when they were just kids, but nothing could be done about it. The Oracle, who was their parents’ childhood friend, was in shambles after delivering it, a broken wreck, apologizing over and over for putting Zoë in danger.

 

Zoë had grown up on a ravenous diet of her mother and father’s adventures, the great Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase, both of whom had saved the world countless times with Jason Grace, Piper McLean, Leo Valdez, Frank Zhang, Hazel Levesque, Reyna Ramirez-Arellano, and Nico di Angelo. She had grown up with all her uncles and aunts and ‘cousins,’ because their parents were so close they may as well have been brothers and sisters from birth.

 

She knew about their first adventures and their last, about how Reyna and Jason had toppled Krios’s throne, how Piper had stabbed Khione and woke the entire ship with just her voice, about Percy and Annabeth’s very long fall- _everything._

 

But perhaps her favorite story was the one of her namesake, the huntress Zoë Nightshade who ultimately decided that maybe heroes weren’t so bad after all.

 

She remembered how she had cried, every time, when her parents got to the part when Zoë had lay, dying, amongst the wreckage of the battle and had only wanted to know if she had served her oath well.

 

She remembered how strangely awed she had been when her father described Zoë’s tale of hunting the Ursa Major, or, in his words, ‘the bear thing.’

 

But most of all, she remembered how angry she had been when she found out what Hercules had done to her namesake.

 

It was that anger that was fuelling her at this very moment.

 

Her quest was supposed to be simple. It was a solo quest, and she was supposed to go through the Mare Nostrum and find a goddess or something. It was incredibly vague and that was the only part she was really sure about. Piper had given her the cornucopia, telling her to give it back to its rightful owner, Achelous.

 

She wasn't prepared to be face to face with Hercules himself.

 

“Ah. Another demigod.” was all he said. Zoë shifted, swallowing down her anger and trying not to focus on the cornucopia he would most definitely want back that was in her bag.

 

“Hello,” she said stiffly.

 

“It’s been a while since demigods have been here,” he said casually. “Last time there were those two demigods, the son of Jupiter and daughter of Aphrodite. Never got that cornucopia from them, but no matter. What can I do for you?”

 

“I need passage through the pillars.”

 

“Yeah, sure. Now, you  know not any demigod can pass the Mare Nostrum, blah blah blah, quest to prove worthiness, yadda yadda. You can sing a song for me and pass. Don’t worry, I’m  nice guy, you get off easy. Not like my cousin Euthryses.”

 

 _Nice guy._ She ground her teeth. Dad always told her to avoid guys who used that term. He said it was a big red flag that they had no fucking backbone.

 

She slowly took Riptide out of her pocket, gripping the cool plastic of the pen. Dad had given it to her as a gift for his quest. His only daughter, he had said, trying to mask his tears, only deserved the best weapon for her quest, a piece of him to stay with her.

 

It was times like this she thanked the gods for her mother’s hair and brains. People assumed she was a dumb blonde because of her hair when in reality it was quite the opposite.

 

She fumbled with the cap and it slipped. Riptide grew into a fully sized sword, and Hercules eyes it suspiciously.

 

“Oops! Clumsy me,” she said hastily. “I haven’t really gotten the hang of this sword yet, it’s new for me.” She flashed him the trademark dumb blonde smile and he seemed to buy it.

 

“Ah, it’s fine. Nice sword, looks familiar come to think of it.” Zoë’s breath caught in her throat as he stopped to ponder. Then he shrugged. “Must be my imagination. I’ve been on this island too long… what’s your name, by the way. Never caught it. It seems difficult to place your lineage by your looks alone- who’re your parents?”

 

She gripped the sword, and finally allowed herself to meet his eyes. She was sure her green eyes were murky and flickering and _dangerous_ , which was exactly how she felt.

 

“My name is Zoë Jackson. My parents are Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase.”

 

“Percy Jackson? Annabeth Chase?” Hercules’s face contorted. “ _Zoë_ ? Nah, can’t be. Okay, who’re _really_ your parents?”

 

She felt her expression harden. She lifted up her free hand lazily and willed the sea to be as dangerous as she felt at that moment. It rose behind her in a thrashing, barely controlled wall. The whole sea was churning with her, chanting to be unrestrained.

 

 _“Listen to me, Zoë, you’re going to have to pass through the Mare Nostrum, and you’re going to meet someone… please, I’m begging you, don’t do anything you’re going to regret. I don’t care who you meet or what happens- I just want my daughter back in one piece. Can you promise me that?”_ She remembered the pained look on his face as he gripped her hands.

 

“I’m a daughter of the son of Poseidon and a daughter of Athena. I’m named after the Lieutenant to the Hunters of Artemis, who died to save Artemis and died in the arms of her Lady. I’m named after the girl who _trusted_ you to credit her and instead you ran off with _Anaklusmos_ and left her to face the wrath of Atlas. I’m named after someone who ultimately decided heroes and men weren’t so bad after all, and she has something she wants me to say to you.”

 

Zoë wasn't aware of her voice rising or the god flinching. She was only aware of surging forward, the strength that flowed through her veins as she pulled her arm back, and a single fleeting constellation in the sky above them.

 

_I’m sorry, Dad._

 

“Sincerely, _fuck you_ , from Zoë Nightshade, late Lieutenant to the Hunters of Artemis, who forever lives on in the stars hunting the night beasts of the sky,” she growled as she watched him stagger backwards from the sheer momentum of the blow, clutching a bloody nose.

 

“Let’s go, motherfucker.” A single streak of light rained down from the heavens, and she grinned inwardly.

 

Tonight Hercules would feel the wrath of the legacy of one of the two most powerful demigods who had ever existed. But perhaps more importantly, tonight Zoë Nightshade would be avenged.

 

The thought comforted Zoë as she charged into battle.

**Author's Note:**

> no regrets fam  
> none at all


End file.
